EPTThis seemed to be a common question among Korean fans when ACE first debuted. People were losing their minds and licking their chops at the mere thought of the Airforce participating in the Proleague. But the source of this fervor was the point of much debate.
When I was in 8th grade (or 7th grade, I don't remember. It was definitely middle school), I started my morning off by watching whatever VOD I had been downloading all the previous night over my 56k connection. At the time, it was the 2003 KTF EVER Proleague on OnGameNet that was holding my progaming interest. I had made sure to keep an eye on the G.O team. Kang Min (Nal_rA) had just won the MSL, Seo Ji Hoon (XellOs) had just won the OSL, and the team had also won the last KPGA Team League on MBCGame. The Proleague was the final frontier for the Greatest Ones.
My morning started off with the taste of a cold chocolate flavored Carnation Instant Breakfast drink on my tongue and Jeon Yong Jun's voice welcoming me to the match between Dong Yang Orion and the KTF MagicNs. The G.O team wasn't playing, but Boxer's team was. The studio was packed.
In mid to late 2002, the fan demographic of progaming took a pretty sudden turn that some ended up describing as "really fucking stupid". The girls had arrived. What used to be knowledgeable SC players (aka, Guys In Glasses) attending the games had been transformed into screaming, banner waving fangirls. The hardcore had been irritated, but not uprooted. It didn't matter then, though. Boxer was playing.
BoxeR vs YellOw at Sin Gaema Gowon was the opening match. There are moments in our lives that we'll just plain remember until we're dead. Watching Orion coach Joo Hoon pump his fist in encouragement when the camera cut away to him from Yo Hwan microing his Marines is one of those moments for me.
Indeed, Yo Hwan won that game in a way that only he could, especially against a player like Hong Jin Ho. It was the first time I really noticed that the female Yo Hwan fanclub who reserved the front row seats and the guys with the short haircuts and thick glasses were rejoicing together. Girls who explode at the sight of Yo Hwan even so much as shooting at another unit and guys who post detailed strategic reports on every pro match in their spare time, they're all glad to be there in that moment.
The ShinHan Proleague debuted with the ACE team. I still remember watching the ACE bench giddy with excitement when the camera cut away to them from Yo Hwan getting ready to contain Bisu in his base. Names like H.O.T, ChRh, Rage, Clon, they've been around for ages and no one questions their seniority. They've been everywhere and seen it all in StarCraft. And to see them light up like that after Yo Hwan won that match made an impression on me not entirely unlike the one I experienced 4 years prior in the Proleague match between BoxeR and YellOw.
Jo Il Jang. An STX SouL rookie Zerg. After watching him defeat Yo Hwan, I couldn't help but notice the look on his face. He then got up and went back to ACE bench.
A bench that was covered, top to bottom and left to right, with over $400 of snacks and gifts from their fans.
A bench that was swarmed with girls asking for autographs after the cameras were off.
A bench that was flashing practically non-stop from all the phones and cameras fixated on them.
A bench that Lim Yo Hwan had placed his seat.
Is all of this for Lim Yo Hwan? No, of course not. It's for the team.
Is all of this because of Lim Yo Hwan? Do I really like the ACE team or is just because Yo Hwan is there?
I like the ACE team.
I love Lim Yo Hwan.
And I'm very comfortable with saying that, yes, it is because of Yo Hwan. Everything, in a way, is because of Yo Hwan. He paid to start the Proleague out of his own pocket so many years ago. He refused a contract just for himself because the company wouldn't sign the rest of the team with him. He made the modern progaming team what it is.
And, win or lose, he'll be there on that bench again.
ACE Fighting!
